Nigeria: Catholic Priest Burned Alive by Bandits
Fr. Isaac Achi
A priest was burned to death on Sunday after bandits set fire to his parish rectory in northern Nigeria. The body of Fr. Isaac Achi was found in the charred parish building of Saints Peter and Paul Church on January 15, according to the Minna Diocese.
At 3 a.m. armed bandits attacked the presbytery in the village of Kafin Koro. Another priest, Fr. Collins Omeh, was shot, but was able to escape and was treated in hospital.
Alhaji Sani Bello Abubakar, the governor of the western Nigerian state of Niger where the attack took place, called the attack “ungodly and inhumane” and ordered local security agencies to prosecute the attackers, according to the Daily Post.
“It's a sad moment. For a priest to be killed in this way means none of us are safe; these terrorists have lost their minds, and drastic action is needed to end this ongoing carnage,” Bello said.
Fr. Achi was parish priest of Saints Peter and Paul where he died. He was also the president of the local branch of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN).
“May the soul of Reverend Father Isaac Achi and the souls of all faithful departed rest in perfect peace,” the Diocese of Minna expressed in a statement shared by the Nigeria Catholic Network.
He is already the second Catholic priest killed in Africa since the beginning of 2023.
(Sources : CNA/Nigeria Catholic Network – FSSPX.Actualités)
Illustration : CNA
